Recap / The Vision Of Escaflowne E 25 Zone Of Absolute Fortune

• Character Development: As the penultimate episode (and with the focus on the final battle next time), time is spent with Millerna, Dryden, and others to show how far their characters have come over the course of the series and after having met Hitomi.
• Cliffhanger: Dornkirk's Fate Alteration Engine activates.
• Fantastic Nuke: The Gaean equivalent of the A-Bomb is desperately deployed against Zaibach. It works, nuking much of their army, but the allies caught at ground zero also suffer heavy casualties.
• Killed Off for Real: Folken, Dornkirk, and all of Zaibach's Four Generals save for Adelphos Gein.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Folken killing Dornkirk doesn't stop him, but instead triggers his endgame.
• The Reveal: Folken is dying (and has been for the entire series). His black wings were a sign of his deterioration (due to experiments he and Dornkirk had performed).
• Rewatch Bonus: The revelation that Folken has been secretly dying for the entire series re-contextualizes the character's behavior and preceding appearances — such as why he was intent and determined on protecting Van and trying to forge a better world for his younger brother to inherit. He was running out of time.
• Spirit Advisor: Kinda. While Dornkirk dies, his spirit stick around to watch the outcome of the Fate Alteration.
• Thanatos Gambit: Dornkirk wanted Folken to kill him, as his death would trigger the Fate Alteration Engine.
• Wham Episode: Folken and Dornkirk die. Our heroes are unable to stop the Fate Alternation Engine's activation.